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papabearmaples

Retirement Update

Dear Friends and Supporters,   

        You may have heard that I am planning on retiring from the full time ministry of New Life Bible Camp next May, at the conclusion of our retreat season. I am writing to give an update of where everything is right now. I did travel to Mena, Arkansas to spend a week with my friend Richard Peck, who had suggested that I retire to Mena (where he lives and runs an AirB&B business). I did enjoy my time in Mena with his family and church friends, but did not feel that the Lord was leading me in that direction. An opportunity closer to home at a local church developed around the same time I was looking at moving to Arkansas. Pastor DJ Ritchey of Memorial Heights Baptist Church in Cumberland, MD (30 minutes from where I live now), talked to me about joining their staff when I retire to serve as a pastoral assistant. The 3 main tasks he has in mind for me is to help with visitation, start a Men’s Ministry, and take part in the Bible teaching for the Wednesday Night service, which I am very eager to do. It will be a part time position (20 hours weekly) and they will begin paying me an hourly wage beginning in June of 2025.  The main thing that I am concerned about right now is finding a new place to live once I finish my time at NLBC. Please be in prayer about that. Costs for renting or buying are very high now.

        I talked a couple of days ago with the pastor of one of my supporting churches and he suggested that I reach out to all my supporters concerning the possibility of continuing their support by helping me start an monthly retirement fund. So I am asking my supporters to pray over this and consider continuing supporting me as I transition into retirement. Instead of sending donations through the camp, the donations will have to go through the church. The suggestion made was that I continue raising support for my retirement through monthly gifts (suggested $50-$100) or through a one time gift to help me transition from camp life to

finding a home in the Cumberland, MD area where I will be living and ministering. At the end of a couple years, we would evaluate with supporting churches to see where to go from there.

        Let me say this, I appreciate everyone that has supported my ministry to be a missionary at New Life Bible Camp. The Lord has fully provided for my needs throughout all of my 35 years at the camp. It has been a pure pleasure to serve the Lord through this wonderful camping ministry, and I am sure that I will miss the ministry and mostly the wonderful people the Lord has brought into my life since coming to New Life in April of 1990.

So to recap, I am leaving the ministry of New Life Bible Camp at the end of May 2025, but I am not leaving the ministry. I will be serving with Pastor DJ at Memorial Heights Baptist Church in Cumberland, MD, assisting in the areas mentioned above, I also will continue to be part of the MHBC worship team, as I have been doing part time since Covid. I am really looking forward to the new adventure the Lord has for me.

        If you feel you can continue supporting me for a year or two past my retirement, that would be a wonderful blessing. But if that is not a possibility, I would still ask that you continue to keep me in your prayers as this is going to be a huge change in my life.  Thanks again for your past support, and if you feel you can help me through the transition of retirement, it would be greatly appreciated. Thank you for your faithfulness in being a partner with me the past 35 years. God bless you all!

 

Ever Only Jesus,

Andy Maples

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